Parenting is Not For Sissys!

Parenting is hard.

I don’t care if you have the best kid in the entire world; the job is hard and doesn’t come with an instruction manual. 9 times out of 10 I am guessing as to what to do. I have taken advice from my mom, mother in law, co-workers, doctors and, once, even considered asking a stranger on the street.

My kid is a drama queen with a capital DRAMA QUEEN. Everything is either the best thing ever or the end of the world. There is no in between for her. Nope. It is cloud 9 or death.

So when she told me that she couldn’t see, I didn’t really believe her. She passed her eye tests at school, so why should I think she was as blind as she wanted me to believe? She claimed she couldn’t see the clock in the kitchen and she never knew the time. I thought she was too lazy to turn her head and look. She told me that she couldn’t see the board in her last period of the day. I thought that was because she hated that class and wanted to come home early.

Finally she started complaining of headaches almost every day. I told Scott that I was going to take her to the doctor because I suffer from migraines and thought she was also. He told me to take her to get her eyes checked first. I argued with him because she just passed her eye test at school last year. He said for me to pay the $10.00 co-pay and that way we can tell her we have had her tested and she is not blind.

So Saturday we went to the eye doctor.

I was pretty sure she was going to sit down in the chair and be just fine. The doctor started with her right eye. She could BARELY read the 3rd line down. Even through that entire eye exam, I thought she was faking. Then they tested her left eye and just zipped right through it.

The doctor gets done and looks at me.

Me: Bad right eye?

Dr: Oh Yeah. That is what is causing the headaches. The left eye has to compensate for everything and by the end of the day she should be having trouble seeing much of anything.

Court: See Mom! I told you!

So – Mother of the Year, I am not. But Mother Doing the Best She Can, I am.

I’ll take that award and will wear it with pride. Just like my mom did.

Wake Up Call

So as most of you know, Courtney is Autistic. She is a high functioning autistic and does pretty well. Because she is who she is, I have joined a lot of groups and list serves that deal with issues that arise with these types of children.

I had thought I read everything but today took the cake. A mom actually posted that when her child was diagnosed she never read the report from the doctor. She listened to what he said, but never read the detailed report. Today she read it and was SURPRISED to find out that it was not all gloom and doom.

Surprised.

I guess what has me all up in arms is that she took what the doctor said and buried her head in the sand. If I knew this person I would drive over to her house and take her by the shoulders and shake some sense into the woman. He is her child. That alone should make her read every doctor’s report, ask every question and then re-ask them until she understands.

I have been there where the room is spinning and you think this isn’t what I signed up for when I decided to have a kid. But Scott and decided long ago it was our job to push the envelope.

My mom told me once that if I have high expectations for Courtney, she will meet them, but also if I have low expectations, she will meet those too. I think that applies to all parents of all kids everywhere.

My sister in law once told me we are our child’s biggest cheerleaders and only defenders. That is probably the most honest thing that has ever been said to me.

So for those of you who can’t get out of bed today – I understand. However, there is a kid on the other side of that door who needs to you to get up and greet the day with a smile (even a forced one) and tell the world this is my kid and they deserve to have a good day.

Pretty soon, that smile won’t be forced.